Castilleja cinerea
Castilleja wightii
ash-gray Indian paintbrush, ash-gray paintbrush
Wight's Indian paintbrush, Wight's paintbrush
several to many, erect to ascending, or decumbent, inflorescence erect in high-elevation form, unbranched, sometimes branched, hairs dense, spreading, ashy gray, short and long, soft, mixed with short stipitate-glandular ones.
few to many, ascending to erect, much-branched, usually with prominent leafy axillary shoots, hairs spreading, long, soft, mixed with shorter, stipitate-glandular ones.
green, brown, purple, or deep gray, linear or narrowly to broadly lanceolate to sometimes ovate, 0.7–3 cm, not fleshy, margins plane, slightly involute, 0(–3)-lobed, apex acuminate;
lobes ascending to spreading, linear to lanceolate, apex acuminate.
green-tinged or ± purple, sometimes yellow-green tinged, densely crowded, linear, lanceolate, oblong, elliptic, or ovate, 1–7 cm, thickened, not usually fleshy, margins plane to wavy, involute or flat, 0–3(–5)-lobed, apex broadly rounded to obtuse or acute;
lobes spreading-ascending, linear, narrowly lanceolate, triangular, or rounded, apex acute, obtuse, or rounded.
1–8.5 × 2–5 cm;
bracts proximally greenish or deep reddish purple, distally burnt orange, sometimes yellow or deep red to deep burgundy, proximal sometimes lanceolate with narrow lobes, distal or all bracts broadly lanceolate to oblong or slightly oblanceolate, (0–)3–5-lobed, appearing dusty with dense, short stipitate-glandular hairs, many with a nodulose to pillarlike, crystallized, usually pigmented exudate, papillose at 40x;
lobes ascending-spreading, oblong or oblanceolate, short, arising above mid length, central lobe apex rounded, often expanded, rounded, or truncate, lateral ones acute to rounded.
3–22 × 1.5–3.5 cm;
bracts proximally green to deep purple, rarely light tan, distally red, scarlet, rose, red-orange, or yellow, sometimes orange, dull brownish orange, pale pinkish tan, yellow aging white, yellow aging pink, red with pink apices, magenta, or white, sometimes with a yellow to deep purple medial band, lanceolate, oblong, or narrowly ovate, (0–)3–5(–7+)-lobed, distal margins of central lobe and sometimes also side lobes with multiple shallow teeth, proximal often wavy-margined;
lobes erect or ascending, linear to lanceolate or oblanceolate, short, arising in distal 2/3, apex obtuse to acute, central lobe often rounded to truncate.
0 mm or nearly so.
straight, 12–18 mm;
tube 9–14 mm;
beak included or tip just barely exserted, adaxially green or pale yellow to deep burgundy, 3–5 mm;
abaxial lip green, burgundy, or reddish purple (in high-elevation form), little inflated, small, included, 2 mm, to 20% as long as beak;
teeth incurved, green, 0.2–0.5 mm.
slightly curved proximally, 20–30 mm;
tube 10–12 mm;
distal portion of beak exserted, abaxial lip included;
beak adaxially green to yellow, 11.5–18 mm;
abaxial lip deep green, sometimes to very deep purple, reduced, included, usually not visible through front cleft, 1–2 mm, 15–25% as long as beak;
teeth erect, green to sometimes pink, 0.5–1.5 mm.
colored as bracts, sometimes whitish proximally, 1.5–20 mm (shorter in upper elevation form);
abaxial and adaxial clefts 3.5–8 mm, 30–50% of calyx length, all 4 clefts subequal;
lobes linear to narrowly oblong or oblanceolate, apex obtuse to rounded, densely stipitate-glandular.
colored as bracts, 15–28 mm;
abaxial and adaxial clefts 8–11 mm, 33–50% of calyx length, deeper than laterals, lateral 2–5.5 mm, 5–30% of calyx length;
lobes lanceolate to oblong to broadly triangular, apex acute, obtuse, or rounded.
= 24, 48.
Castilleja cinerea
Castilleja wightii
Castilleja cinerea is endemic to the higher elevations of the San Bernardino Mountains, San Bernardino County. Most plants are upright to ascending and have yellow to yellow-orange inflorescences, with occasional plants ranging to dull red, especially with age. On Sugarloaf Mountain, mostly above 2700 m, is a distinctive form with consistently reddish purple to burgundy inflorescences and a strongly decumbent growth form.
Castilleja cinerea is most often associated with and likely parasitic on Artemisia nova and Eriogonum species. Castilleja cinerea is known from few populations and is threatened by livestock grazing, development, and vehicle use. It is listed as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act of the United States.
The crystalline exudate associated with the stipitate-glandular pubescence of the distal portion of the bracts is unique in the genus.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Castilleja wightii is found along or near the central and northern coast of California. Historical collections of C. wightii from Curry County, Oregon, are referable to other species, but it should be sought in the area. Reports from the south-central coast of California are referable to other species, particularly C. affinis. Castilleja wightii appears to intergrade with C. latifolia and perhaps C. affinis south of San Francisco. Despite much attention from botanists, the perennial paintbrushes along the coast between Monterey and San Francisco can be perplexing and difficult to identify. This situation is likely the result of introgression, but this complex is in need of meticulous genetic and morphological analysis. North of San Francisco, C. wightii is straightforward to recognize, with its abundantly stipitate-glandular stems and leaves. In addition, the leaves are often crowded on the stems, which bear axillary shoots. Most populations have either red or yellow bracts, with only occasional individual plants of the other color. Yellow populations are found primarily in Marin and southern Sonoma counties southward and are gradually replaced by red populations from northern Sonoma County northward. Mixed color populations occur in a few places, especially in San Mateo County.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
CA
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USDA Plants Database
